


Each Other's Saviour

by Jammequin



Category: The Blacklist, The Blacklist (TV)
Genre: Angst, F/M, First Time
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-02
Updated: 2016-07-22
Packaged: 2018-07-19 16:05:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7368301
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jammequin/pseuds/Jammequin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Whilst on the run from the Cabal, Red is taken. When he returns, he is not himself. Set during Season 3A. Some possible triggers for depression/anxiety sufferers.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Safe Now

‘Where is he?’ Liz cried out as soon as she got through the door. Mr Kaplan stood aside and beckoned Liz into the front room off the hallway.

‘He’s upstairs in bed. Don’t worry, dearie, he’s physically fine. However, the cocktail of chemicals and goodness knows what they gave him has near incapacitated him in other ways. I’ve not been able to ascertain what exactly they’ve given him or how long the effects will last but for now we can’t leave him alone. Not for a second’.

Liz sighed and turned towards the door, ‘I need to see him. Can I go up?’

‘Of course. Dembe is up there at the moment. You can relieve him once I’ve……’.

Liz didn’t wait for Mr Kaplan to finish and headed for the stairs and hurried on up. She hadn’t seen Red for over forty-eight hours and had to know he was okay. They’d been separated whilst escaping from a group of mercenaries hired by the Cabal and although she had gotten away, Red had not been so lucky. He had insisted that she hide in a closet in an abandoned warehouse whilst he tried to lead their pursuers away. Why Liz had agreed she had no idea. She certainly hadn’t forgiven herself. But Red had been adamant and she trusted him to know better about these kinds of things. Being pursued as a fugitive was something he’d been doing for over two decades.

By the time she had left the closet, there was no sign of Red or the hired thugs. She looked everywhere around the area but it was empty. Even the car they’d been driving had gone. She briefly thought maybe Red had gotten in the car and driven off to lure their attackers away but that hopeful thought soon disappeared once she saw Red’s shades lying, smashed, on the concrete near to where their car had been parked. He’d been taken. She was sure of it. Damn! She shouldn’t have listened to him about staying in the closet. Now what would she do? Quickly she dialled Dembe’s number. This was an emergency; there was no choice but to call in the cavalry.

Within two days, whilst Liz laid low and out of sight providing any technical backup that they might need, Dembe and Mr Kaplan had managed to find where Red had been taken. When they got there, there were only four men guarding and ‘questioning’ him, so it was easy enough for the two of them to overpower the men and rescue Red. They immediately took him to a safe house, just north of Boston. It was one of Red’s favourite safe houses, due to the vast number of trees on the property which he adored watching turn in the Fall but sadly he was in no state to enjoy them right now.

‘Elizabeth, wait, dearie. I need to tell you some more about Raymond before you see him’, Mr Kaplan called from the bottom of the stairs.

Liz turned, a worried look on her face. She came back down the stairs and braced herself for the news. 

‘The cocktail they gave him has basically given him what’s best described as severe depression. It’s more than he can do even to leave his bed. Any depression is bad enough but this is horrific. There’s also something in the drugs they gave him that’s given him acute anxiety. His heart rate hasn’t fallen below 90 bpm since we got him back. He’s not eating, barely drinking and doesn’t even seem able to talk much. He’s a mess. We don’t dare leave him alone in case he tries to hurt himself. He hasn’t yet but I don’t trust that he won’t. It’s only been about ten hours since we got him back so hopefully the drugs’ll wear off soon. But in the meantime, he needs our care’.

‘I understand’, Liz said, a sinking feeling coming over her. She couldn’t imagine the exuberant, larger than life, bon viveur that Red was to be in such a state. She needed to see him right now.

She turned and hurried on back up the stairs, heading towards where she saw an open door at the end of the hallway. Dembe was sitting just inside the doorway, staring at the bed. As she got nearer, she saw a shape in the bed and recognised Red’s shoes on the floor beside it. Something about the way they were neatly lined up gave her some hope. But then she realised it had probably been Dembe or Mr Kaplan that had done that. 

‘Hey Dembe’, she spoke quietly to the large figure who turned to smile at her

‘Hi Elizabeth. Thank goodness you are here. He needs you right now. I don’t think anyone else can get through to him’. Dembe stood, gently stroked Liz’s arm and then disappeared back downstairs to where Mr Kaplan was waiting.

Liz assumed by the lack of communication or movement from the bed that Red must be asleep but to be sure she slipped off her shoes and crept around the edge of the bed, in order to see Red’s face. He was lying, facing the window, completely covered by a blanket, despite the fact it was quite a warm day.

As she came between the window and the bed she saw that Red’s eyes were open, staring listlessly ahead. If she hadn’t known he wasn’t physically harmed, she would have thought he was in pain due to the wrinkling of his brow and the downward pull of his lips. Her heart nearly broke in two just seeing the look on his face. She quickly pulled a chair from under the window to next to the bed and sat as close as she could, careful not to obscure the view of the window Red had as she did so. He seemed fixated on some point outside, possibly the top of one of the trees in the garden that were swaying lightly in the breeze.

Red didn’t seem to have even noticed her presence at all. She wasn’t even sure he had blinked since she’d clapped eyes on him. She felt the need for some kind of physical connection with him but everything apart from his head was hidden under the blanket. However, the need was too great for that to stop her and she hoped that it would help him too, to have another human being’s touch. She gently pulled the blanket away from under his chin and exposed his hands, tightly bound to his chest. She coaxed one of them free and pulled it towards her. Still he made no move of any kind or any sound, just staring ahead. She held his hand between hers and gently ran her thumb over the top of it, stroking the light covering of golden hair he had there as she did so.

‘Hey, Red, I’m here. It’s Lizzy’, she started, unsure how to continue. She frowned and carried on. ‘Mr Kaplan says that you’ve been given some pretty nasty drugs, ones that make you feel hopeless. And scared. I…, I don’t know what I can do to help until they wear off. But I’ll do whatever it takes, whatever you want’.

Still Red hadn’t looked at her. She wondered what else she could do to try to engage with him.

‘Raymond?’

A blink. His first name falling from her lips for the first time had definitely gotten some kind of a reaction. She was encouraged.

‘Raymond, can you hear me?’

Red’s eyes slowly shifted from the window and gradually came into focus on Liz’s face. He blinked once more and she could see tears forming in those beautiful green pools.

‘Lizzy…. Lizzy, you’re here?’

‘Yes, Raymond, I’m here. See?’ She lifted his hand to her face and gently kissed the back of his knuckles. Seeing Red like this was killing her. She needed to help him.

As Liz’s mouth touched his hand, a small noise of what sounded like pain but could've been anything came from Red’s throat. He clasped her hand tighter and started trying to sit up.

‘Are you okay, Lizzy? Did they hurt you?’

‘No, no, Raymond. They didn’t even catch me. Remember? You saved me. You got them away from me. I’m fine. It’s you I’m worried about’.

‘You’re okay’. A semblance of a smile crept over Red’s face and the tears that had formed in his eyes started to fall down his cheek.

With that Liz couldn’t stand another second. She got off the chair and nudged herself onto the bed, forcing Red to shift back slightly. As he did so, she lay down next to him and gathered him in her arms.

‘I’m so sorry I let you go out there alone, Raymond. I shouldn’t have. This is my fault. But you’re gonna be okay, I promise. I’m gonna be here every second of every hour until you’re okay’.

Red’s arms slowly came up and joined around Liz’s back and they lay there completely entwined in each other. Red was still crying lightly but Liz’s soothing noises and the way she was stroking his arms and back seemed to be calming him down.

'You’re gonna be okay, Raymond’ Liz promised.

As night slowly fell, the two of them lay as contently as they could, safe in the knowledge that each other was there, next to them, holding them tight, never letting go.


	2. A Bad Night

Liz awoke suddenly in the middle of the night. She had no idea what had startled her awake but upon hearing Red’s soft snores, she had a suspicion. She looked at him in the moonlight. He looked peaceful at last. However, she desperately needed the bathroom and so delicately extricated herself from his grip around her waist and tiptoed out into the hallway. His breathing pattern hadn’t changed so she hoped she could make it to the bathroom and back before he awoke. She didn’t want him waking alone.

Once Liz had finished in the bathroom she came back out into the hallway and turned to return to the bedroom. It was then that she saw a light coming from downstairs. It looked like either Dembe or Mr Kaplan was still awake. She decided Red would be okay for a few more minutes and moved down the stairs to see if there was any news.

Mr Kaplan looked up and smiled sadly as Liz entered the sitting room. ‘Hi dearie, how’s he doing?’

‘He’s fast asleep at the moment. I just thought I’d pop down to talk to you for a few minutes. I won’t leave him long. I can’t believe the state he’s in. It’s horrible. Why would anyone do that to him?’

‘I have no idea, Elizabeth. I suspect they attempted to interrogate him but soon discovered that he’s not a man who would crack under torture. I know I said he was unharmed physically but I only meant seriously unharmed. He does have some bruising and cuts. Nothing to worry about. So, once they realised they weren’t going to get any information out of him, perhaps they just decided to cause him mental anguish instead. The Cabal would enjoy doing something like that to a man like Raymond. Or maybe the drugs he was given were just the first of many he would be given. Maybe they were hoping to break his mind. I suspect we’ll never know, seeing as the brutes are all dead now’.

‘Do we know yet what he was given or when it’ll wear off?’

‘No, unfortunately. I drew some blood and sent it to be tested but haven’t heard back yet. I can only assume the condition won’t last too long as he wasn’t there long enough to have been given a big enough dose to have permanent effects. At least that’s what I’m praying’.

Liz sighed, ‘I hate feeling so helpless. I don’t know what to do to help him’.

‘Just be with him, sweetheart. One of the few things he did say after we rescued him was your name. Over and over again. He was adamant you were injured or…worse. I think his captors must have tried to persuade him that they had you in order to either give them information or just to make him suffer. He didn’t seem to believe me or Dembe when we tried to persuade him otherwise’.

Just as Liz was about to ask another question, there was a crash from upstairs.

‘Shit, he’s awake’, Liz blurted out as she headed for the stairs at a run.

She made it to his room in seconds only to be greeted with the sight of him standing by the window, clad only in a t-shirt and boxers. The water jug that had been by his bed was now lying smashed on the floor.

‘Red, are you okay? Red? Raymond?’

‘Lizzy, where were you? I woke and I was alone. I thought…. I thought maybe I’d imagined you being here. My mind’s so fuzzy…’, Red trailed off as he looked down at the smashed glass.

‘Okay, don’t move, Raymond. There’s glass everywhere. Just let me quickly fetch a dustpan’.

Liz ran down the stairs and back to Mr Kaplan. ‘He’s okay. He just broke the water jug. Is there something I can use to tidy the glass?’

‘Allow me, dearie. Cleaning up Raymond’s messes is my forte’, Mr Kaplan said, allowing herself a wry grin.

After disappearing into the kitchen for a couple of moments, Mr Kaplan re-emerged and they both headed back upstairs. When they got to the room, Red hadn’t moved from the spot. He was now crouched down, hugging his knees and rocking slightly.

‘Elizabeth, talk to him whilst I clear the glass’, Mr Kaplan said as she headed straight for where Red was becoming increasingly agitated.

‘Hey Raymond, I’m back. And Mr Kaplan’s here too. She’s just gonna clear that glass so you can move, okay?’

Red didn’t reply as Mr Kaplan hastily went about her work. Within a couple of minutes the water was soaked up and all the glass was gone.

‘Okay, Elizabeth. I’ll leave you to it. You’re all he needs right now’, Mr Kaplan said as she gently stroked the top of Red’s head and then headed for the door.

‘Right, Raymond, you gonna get up and come back to bed?’

Red didn’t reply. He seemed to be entering some kind of a trance almost.

‘Please Raymond, look at me?’ Liz implored as she crouched down next to him.

He still didn’t reply. She sat forward and pulled him towards her. As he lost his balance he fell onto his side, his head landing in her lap. Immediately he fastened his arms around her waist and buried his face into her stomach. Liz gently stroked his arms and started saying soothing words to him, shushing his soft crying and occasionally kissing his temple.

After a few minutes, he appeared to have calmed a little. She carefully removed his arms from around her waist and forced him to sit up.

‘Okay, you, we’re gonna get back into bed now’.

She stood up and Red docilely let himself be pulled up with her. He had stopped crying now but his eyes were still puffy and his cheeks wet. Liz rubbed her thumbs across both of his cheeks and smiled sweetly at him.

‘Back to bed now, come on’.

She led him over to the bed and they both crawled back in. Liz lay on her back and pulled him next to her, his arms immediately going back around her waist and his head resting on her shoulder. She held him tight and leant her cheek against the top of his head.

‘I was so scared Lizzy. So scared. I still am. I feel terrified but I have no idea of what. And so sad. I feel like my heart is breaking’

‘I know, Raymond, I know. But you’re going to get better. You will. And I’m so sorry I left you. You were sound asleep and I was only going to run to the bathroom but I had a quick chat with Mr Kaplan too. I didn’t think you'd wake up, I’m sorry. I won’t leave you again, I promise’.

‘Thank you. Thank you. Please don’t, Lizzy, please don’t. I can’t bear this without you. Even with you, I don’t think I can put up with this for long’.

‘I’m sure it won’t last much longer, Raymond. And I’ll be here until it stops. You’ll be back on your feet in no time. And when you are, I’ll let you take me out to dinner if you want. One of your fancy places where the linen costs more than the dress I’ll wear’, Liz said whilst smiling at him.

Red looked up and smiled softly at her. He sniffed and said, ‘I’d like that, Lizzy. Very much. You deserve to be spoiled’.

‘And you deserve to spoil me’, Liz said, smiling back at him.

Red sighed softly and lowered his head back to her shoulder. He could feel himself starting to nod off again and before he did, he whispered softly to Liz, ‘I love you sweetheart. I can’t lose you. I can’t….’

Liz heard him and smiled to herself. She knew he loved her. And seeing him like this, in this terrible pain, had made her realise that she loved him too. She’d kill a hundred men before she’d let anyone hurt Red like this again.

‘Go to sleep, Raymond. You’re not going to lose me. And I refuse to lose you’.

They both slowly dropped off back to sleep, once more hugging each other tightly and finding calm and hope in each other’s presence.


	3. On the Mend

Liz’s eyes slowly fluttered open the next morning, the light streaming in through the window and brightening the room, chasing away the remnants of the night before. She turned to her side, only to see that Red was not there in the bed with her. She immediately shot up, instantly wide awake as she leapt out of the bed. He was not in the room at all so she headed straight into the hallway and was just about to call his name when she saw Mr Kaplan coming out of a room at the far end of the corridor.

‘Good morning, Elizabeth. Did you sleep at all?’

‘Yes, fine, but where’s Red; he’s not in the bedroom?’

‘Oh, don’t worry, dearie, he’s in the bathroom. He’s been awake for an hour or so. He didn’t want to wake you as he felt he had probably tired you out last night’.

‘Oh, thank god. And no, he didn’t, I slept fine. I was just worried when I woke and he wasn’t there. I thought he might’ve, well, I don’t know really. I just needed to know he was okay’.

‘Oh, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by his mood today. He seems much more himself. I think the drugs are wearing off. He’s not quite there yet but we chatted a bit this morning and he’s certainly on the mend’.

Just as Mr Kaplan finished updating Liz, the bathroom door opened and out stepped Red, still in his sleepwear. 

‘Good morning, Lizzy’, he said, smiling at her warmly, ‘Are you rested?’

Liz couldn’t help herself, she stepped up to him and grabbed both his hands, looking him carefully in his eyes.

‘I’m fine, Red. How are you?’

‘Oh, it’s back to Red now, is it?’, Red said, teasingly, with a twinkle in his eye.

Liz laughed lightly. ‘Sorry, force of habit. Maybe I’ll stick with Raymond, when I remember, if it’s okay with you?’

‘More than okay, sweetheart’

‘How are you though, really? Don’t deflect’.

‘I’m a lot better. I woke up and felt a lot lighter. I may've just spent longer than average staring at myself in the mirror but apart from that, much improved’.

Liz grinned at him and tugged on his hand, ‘Okay, good. What’s say we get dressed and have some breakfast then? I’m famished’.

‘Oh my god, me too. I actually have no idea when I last ate. I could eat a horse. Maybe even two…..’

Mr Kaplan smiled at them both as they headed back into the bedroom then she headed off down the stairs. Liz grabbed the few items of clothing she’d taken off the night before and headed for the bathroom. ‘I’ll meet you in the kitchen, okay?’

‘Sure thing, Lizzy. But I can’t promise not to start without you…..’

Within five minutes they were both seated around the kitchen table, wolfing down toast with jam and scrambled eggs that Mr Kaplan had made for all three of them.

Red sat back and sighed contentedly. ‘Oh my word, that is so much better’, he said as he poured more coffee for them all. ‘Although I suspect I may regret eating all that so fast after not eating for, what, four days?’

Mr Kaplan stood and smiled at him, ‘Oh, I’m sure your stomach can handle a large meal, Raymond. It’s been well-trained’, she said to him fondly.

‘Thank you for that, Kate’, Red frowned at her. Then winked, ‘And yes, you’re probably right. Seriously though, thank you for looking after me the last couple of days. And, of course, for rescuing me from those thugs. You and Dembe are once more in my debt’.

‘You know you're welcome, Raymond. And speaking of Dembe, I’m going to go meet him now. He’s found a few leads that need to be followed up about who exactly hired these men in the first place’.

‘What has he……’

‘No, Raymond, I will not tell you. You may be feeling better but you are not doing any work today. And almost certainly not tomorrow either. Elizabeth here will make sure of that’, Mr Kaplan said whilst nodding at Liz.

‘Oh, yes, I will, don’t you worry’, Liz said as she raised an eyebrow at Red.

‘Fine, fine, I know better than to argue with two strong willed women such as yourselves. And, truth be known, my mind is still a little foggy. Another day of leisure it is then’.

Mr Kaplan then squeezed Red on the shoulder and whispered in his ear, ‘I’m so glad you’re okay, Raymond. Don’t scare us like that again, okay? And you call me immediately if you start feeling any more symptoms. Got that?’

‘Yes, Ma’am’, Red said, mock saluting her.

‘Oh, yes, he’s definitely back to himself. Good luck, Elizabeth. I’ll see you both soon’. Mr Kaplan picked up her bag and left via the front door.

‘Okay, so, what do you want to do today…….’ Liz started to ask Red but when she turned to see his face, the question died in her throat. He suddenly looked as though he was going to cry again, his shoulders had slumped and he looked in pain.

‘Raymond’, she cried and jumped out of her seat to go to him. She wrapped her arms around him and held on tight. ‘Are you all right, what is it?’

‘I…I….. Can’t….’ Red managed before his voice failed.

‘Shush, shush, it’s all right, it’s all right. It’s just the drugs. Don’t worry, it’ll pass. Just hold onto me, I’m right here’.

Red’s arms came up around Liz’s waist and once more he clung to her like a drowning man to a buoy. They stayed like that for a few minutes, Liz gently stroking his head and reassuring him with whispered promises.

‘Oh, Lizzy…. It’s passed. Oh my god, that was terrifying. I wasn’t ready for such a sudden return of those feelings. It was like being hit by a truck’, Red managed as he slowly started to come back to himself.

‘Are you okay now, Raymond? Look at me’.

Red looked up and their eyes met, ‘Yeah, yeah, I think so. It was like a wave passing over me. It’s gone again. For now. Kate said something like this might happen but that it’d become rarer and the effects less palpable as time went on’.

‘Well, just in case that happens again, I’m afraid to say you’re gonna be stuck with me all day then. You’re not leaving my sight’.

‘Even to go to the bathroom?’

‘Okay, maybe then’, Liz laughed, ‘but I’m standing right outside the door!’

They grinned at each other and stood away from the table.

‘Come on, Lizzy, let’s go for a walk. I’d kill for some fresh air. What do you say?’

‘Sounds good’, Liz immediately agreed

Red went upstairs to fetch his hat and coat from the closet and hurried back down the stairs.

‘I know you don’t have any clothing here, Lizzy. I’ll call Kate and ask her to bring you back a few things when she returns. But in the meantime, have you the right things for a nice stroll through the fields?’

‘Yeah, I’ll be good, thank you. And if I get cold, I know where I can ‘borrow’ a lovely looking coat’, Liz said whilst tugging on Red’s sleeve.

‘Well, we’ll see about that, my dear’, Red said as he opened the door and ushered Liz outside.

They set off down the driveway, heading towards the open fields and woods that bordered the property. Liz walked right next to Red and within a few paces, her hand was neatly tucked up in the crook of his arm. Red smiled to himself and peeked at her out of the corner of his eye. Oh, yes, today was a much better day all right, he thought to himself, as the fresh air filled his lungs and Liz’s closeness filled his heart.


	4. Being There

Red and Liz walked for over two hours, pausing briefly at one point to sit under some trees and just relax, watching the birds swooping in the sky overhead. It was wonderfully peaceful.

Once they were back at the house, Liz headed straight to the kitchen, declaring she’d fix them up something to eat. Red sat down in the front room and sighed softly. He was feeling much better but still couldn’t quite shake the feeling he wasn’t completely recovered. His mind was still foggy and the fear of another anxiety attack paled him a little.

Liz returned to the front room, carrying a tray of cheese and crackers and some fruit. 

‘Wow, this place is well stocked. You’d never be able to tell it was one of your safe houses, Raymond’, she said to him fondly.

‘Ha’, Red barked. ‘Well, yes, you know I do appreciate the finer things in life. Oh, you found the Brie? Wonderful. It’s imported from France, the real thing. Absolutely divine’, he said as Liz handed him a plate.

They sat and ate peacefully, each just enjoying the other’s company. Once they had finished, Red excused himself to go to the bathroom and Liz cleared up the dishes.

As Liz finished in the kitchen and scanned over that morning’s newspaper, which Mr Kaplan had left lying on the table, she realised that Red had been gone almost ten minutes. She headed for the stairs, worried that he might have had another relapse. As she got to the top of the stairs, she saw the bathroom door was open and the room empty so she turned towards Red’s bedroom and hurried into it.

‘Raymond, where are you?’

There was no reply and he didn’t appear to be in here either. Liz started to panic and quickly headed to one of the other upstairs bedrooms, where Mr Kaplan had been this morning. She found Red standing at the window in there, absolutely stock still. He didn’t react at all when she entered so she hurried to his side and turned him slightly so she could look him in the eyes.

‘Raymond, hey, you all right?’

‘I think so. I just, er, found myself in here and became captivated by the wind in the trees. I don’t really remember…. I’m sorry, sweetheart. I didn’t mean to worry you’.

‘That’s okay, I just need you to talk to me if these kinds of things happen. Deal?’

‘Sorry, Lizzy, yes. Deal. This didn’t feel like before though. More like I was in a kind of daydream. I actually feel all right’.

‘Good’, Liz said as she reached out and squeezed his hand. ‘Now, how’s about you come back downstairs so I can keep an eye on you, okay?’

‘Of course’.

They both headed back down the stairs and returned to the front room. Red sat back down on the couch and Liz came to sit next to him, still feeling the need to keep close. ‘Fancy telling me a story, Raymond?’, she asked with a smile on her face.

‘A story? What kind of story?’

‘You know, one of your ridiculously over the top ones which I only half believe are true. One of your crazy adventures’.

‘Only half believe are true? Oh, Elizabeth, I’m wounded. They are all perfectly true. I admit, there may be a tiny soupçon of embellishment once in a while but only within the confines of artistic licence’.

‘Okay, so go on. Tell me about Mad Boris and his harem of spoon fed camels’, Liz said, laughing out loud as she did so.

‘How on earth do you know about Boris?’, Red asked, feigning a shocked look as he turned to her. ‘That’s a top secret story. Nobody knows that…... Do all my stories really sound that silly to you, Lizzy?’

‘No, not at all. I was just teasing’, Lizzy said, grabbing hold of Red’s hand. ‘Come on, entertain me’.

‘Well, seeing as you asked so ‘nicely’, my dear’, Red said, whilst pretending to frown at her. ‘Oh, well, I’m sure you’ll love the tale about a Swede I once knew called Sven. Absolute giant of a man. Easily two metres tall. Beard like a rhododendron bush in full bloom. You can see why the Vikings were so feared if he was anything to go by’, Red said as he pulled a face at Liz, making her laugh. ‘He was into the smuggling of saffron, would you believe, of all things……..’

Red carried on and Liz listened, enraptured. In truth, she sometimes found his tales too far-fetched to be true. But, if he insisted they were, she trusted him. Besides, they were almost always funny. And it was clearly cheering him up to chat away to her. His hands were becoming more and more animated and the range of facial expressions he was pulling was making Liz giggle. She settled back into the couch and let his voice just wash over her.

Before they knew it, Mr Kaplan had returned and headed straight into the front room.

‘Hello, you two. How are you both doing?’

‘Very well, thank you Kate. You and Dembe have a successful day?’ Red asked, hoping to get some details out of her.

‘Yes, we did. Very productive. And, if you continue to improve, I’ll even tell you about it. Tomorrow.’ Mr Kaplan said whilst raising a matronly eyebrow at Red.

‘Fine, fine. Well, as long as you’re both safe’.

‘And how are you feeling? Any more moments of panic or despair?’

‘Just the one really, and an odd moment where I lost focus. But I’d say I’m at least 99% better now’, Red said smiling happily at Mr Kaplan.

‘Excellent news. Well, I’m going to prepare some dinner. You two hungry?’

‘Always’, said Red.

‘Absolutely’, chimed in Liz.

Two hours later and the three of them were still sitting around the kitchen table, happily sated and starting to feel sleepy.

‘Right, well I’m going to head to bed now, Raymond, Elizabeth. I shall see you both in the morning. Please come and fetch me if you’re worried about any new or recurring symptoms though, okay?’

Red and Liz both agreed they would and bade goodnight to Mr Kaplan. Once they had cleared up in the kitchen they headed upstairs to Red’s bedroom. One by one they went to use the bathroom and then found themselves back in the bedroom, each suddenly a little unsure of what would happen next.

‘Raymond, if it’s okay, I’d like to sleep in here with you again? I know there’s another room I could use but I’d like to be close to you’.

‘Oh sweetheart, thank you. I wanted to ask if you would but wasn’t sure how to’.

‘Raymond, don’t be silly. You know I’ve said I’ll not leave your side until you’re completely better and I meant it. I just wanted to be sure you were still okay with me invading your personal space’.

‘More than okay. I’d very much appreciate your presence with me tonight, Lizzy. Just having you close makes me feel much happier’.

‘Okay, well, that’s settled then’, Liz said as she pulled back the covers and slid into the bed. ‘But I’m having this side, so you’d better not have a problem with that’, she said as she winked at him.

‘I think that’s a problem I can easily surmount, my dear’, Red said as he got in the other side.

Liz reached out and turned out the bedside lamp. Once more the curtains had been left open so the moonlight came streaming into the room. They both lay there in the quiet for a few moments, each becoming increasingly self-conscious of the other’s proximity. Before she really realised what she was doing, Liz snaked out an arm and found Red’s hand. She squeezed it lightly and he immediately squeezed hers back. He then let out a sigh he hadn’t even realised he’d been holding in. They soon both fell asleep, hands still tightly bound together between them.


	5. A Full Recovery

Liz was the first to awake the next morning. The first thing she did was turn her head to the side to see if Red was still with her and still sleeping. She was pleased to see both these things were true. Their hands had come apart in the night but Red looked perfectly at peace as he slumbered on. She eased herself carefully out of bed and crept out to the bathroom.

By the time she returned, Red was awake and sitting up, slowly blinking and looking out the window with a smile on his face.

‘Good morning, Lizzy. How did you sleep? I have to say I feel magnificent today’.

‘That’s great news’, Liz said as she smiled back at him. ‘No bad feelings at all?’

‘Nothing. And I do believe I slept the whole night through. Yourself?’

‘I feel good too, thanks. Even your snoring couldn’t keep me awake’.

‘I do not snore!’

‘Yes, yes you do. However, it’s kinda cute so I’ll let you off’.

Red harrumphed and headed off to the bathroom himself. ‘Well, shockingly, I am once more starving. Meet you downstairs for some breakfast, my dear?’

‘Absolutely’.

Half an hour later and the two of them were sitting at the kitchen table, fit to burst. Mr Kaplan had popped down to see how Red was doing and then headed out once more. She said she may not return that day unless she was needed urgently as she had other business to attend to with Dembe. Despite Red desperately trying to get more information out of her regarding what she and Dembe were up to, she refused to tell him, explaining it was simple enough and that his input really wasn’t necessary. 

Red sighed once Mr Kaplan had left. ‘I hate being out of the loop’.

‘Oh, don’t worry, Raymond. I’m sure Kate will let you know anything you need to. You can give yourself one more day off, surely?’

‘Well, yes. Maybe…..’ Red’s eyes lit up suddenly and a sneaky smile crossed his face. ‘You know what, there is some business I need to attend to. Would you excuse me a couple of hours, sweetheart, whilst I make some phone calls?’

‘Of course. I may go for a walk around the garden. I’ll take my phone though. You call me immediately if you need me, okay?’

‘I will, Lizzy, never fear’.

With that Liz stood up and fetched her phone and went out the door. Red hurried to his study and started making the first of what would be quite a few phone calls.

As lunchtime approached, Liz headed back into the house. She had spent a couple of hours walking and looking at the flowers and shrubs in the property’s vast gardens. It was really beautiful here, she could see why Red loved this safe house so much. As she came back into the house, she could hear Red’s voice on the phone, just finishing off his latest call.

‘Fantastic, Alfredo. I look forward to seeing you later. I will owe you hugely for this very generous favour’, Red said as he ended the call. He then turned and looked a little startled to see Liz standing in the doorway. 

‘How long have you been back, my dear’, he asked, with what he hoped was only a mildly inquisitive look on his face.

‘Oh, just got back now. Your business going okay?’

‘Yes, yes, swimmingly. In fact, I may need to pop out later tonight to meet a, er, a colleague briefly’.

‘Raymond, are you sure that’s wise? We’re still not sure you’re fully better’.

‘Oh, nonsense, Lizzy. I’m fine. And, of course, I will allow you to accompany me if you’re worried. I do need to see him as soon as possible though. He only ever has half hour windows in his diary for reasons that…, well, let’s just leave it at that, okay?’

‘Okay, okay. But I am definitely coming with you, you’d better believe that!’

‘Oh, I do. Now come, let’s see what we can nibble on. I swear I just can’t seem to feel full for more than an hour at the moment’.

They headed off into the kitchen to make themselves a light lunch, which they took out to the patio to eat. They stayed out there for a couple of hours, just enjoying the sunshine and each other’s company until Red’s phone rang and he quickly answered it.

‘Excellent. I shall meet you at the front door’.

‘Who was that?’, Liz enquired

‘Come with me and you’ll find out, my dear’.

They stood up and headed towards the front door, Red surging ahead in an enthusiastic manner. Liz had no idea who could possibly have gotten him so excited. He reached the door and opened it and she saw a couple of men standing there, carrying large packages wrapped in plastic and a few boxes.

‘Ah, gentlemen, welcome. If you could please just bring all that into the front room here’, Red said as he ushered them in. ‘Just place it on the couch there, yes. Thank you. Thank you so very much for doing this so quickly’.

Red showed the men to the door and then returned to the front room, where Liz was still standing, looking curiously at the packages.

‘Full disclosure, Lizzy. I may’ve decided to spoil you a little. Seeing as you’ve quite literally been a lifesaver these past few days’, Red said and as he did so, Liz could swear she saw him blush a little.

‘Raymond, you don’t need to. What on earth have you bought?’

‘Well, I decided that maybe you’d like a new dress. And, of course, some shoes to go with the dress. And, obviously, therefore, some jewellery’, Red said as he lightly shuffled his feet. ‘I do hope it’s not too much. If you feel it is, then maybe we can call it an early birthday gift seeing as your birthday is less than a fortnight away?’

‘Raymond, I don’t know what to say. Thank you! You really didn’t have to. However, I’m not going to say no if I’m honest. I’ve not bought a new dress in forever’, Liz said as a huge smile appeared on her face.

‘Okay, excellent, well that’s settled. Now, if you’ll excuse me a moment, I need to go and get myself properly dressed in case my colleague calls and we need to set off at a moment’s notice. Why don’t you have a little look through some of the items whilst I’m gone? But no changing into them until I can see you!’

Liz laughed and pushed Red towards the door. ‘Okay, Raymond, I promise I won’t dare to try them on. Hurry back though. I’ve a feeling, with your taste, these are going to be irresistible’.

Red hurried up the stairs and found the favourite suit of his that he had in that house. He quickly put it on, found his dress shoes, chose a fedora to set off the whole look and came back downstairs at double time, such was his anticipation to see Liz’s reaction to the dresses.

‘Raymond, these are all so beautiful. However, I think maybe five is a bit excessive, don’t you?’

‘Oh, hogwash, sweetheart. I just couldn’t choose between all the various colours and designs. They all looked like they would suit you perfectly. Do you like them all?’

‘I do. Thank you so much. Now can I start trying them on?’

‘Yes, yes, please do. I’ll just step into the corridor for a moment’.

Red stood just outside the doorway, feeling happier than he had in a long time. Spoiling Lizzy was something he had long wanted to do and she was letting him. He couldn’t stop smiling.

‘Okay, Raymond. Dress one is on, although I could do with a hand with the zipper’.

Red came back into the room and stopped dead. She had tried the red dress on first. That was his favourite. It brought back so many wonderful memories of their night at the Syrian Embassy. This one was a very different design but the shade of red complemented Liz’s complexion and hair perfectly.

‘Oh, my sweet, you look absolutely, stunningly gorgeous’, Red eventually said when he could manage to speak.

Liz blushed and looked down at herself. ‘Thank you. The zipper?’

‘Of course, sweetheart’. Red stepped towards her and swiftly pulled up the zipper at the back of the dress, allowing himself a brief moment of enjoying the view of the nape of her neck as he did so.

‘There. All done. It fits perfectly, does it not?’

‘It really does. I almost feel I should be worried you know my measurements so well’, Liz said with a raised eyebrow.

‘Well, it was an educated guess’, Red quickly blurted out and Liz saw this time that he definitely blushed.

‘Okay, well, let’s see about the shoes…. Yes, these were the ones I thought would go best with the red dress’, Red said as he handed her a box.

As she was putting the shoes on, Red quickly rooted around and found a smaller box. ‘And these are the earrings and necklace’.

Liz finished putting on the whole ensemble and turned to Red for his opinion. ‘Well?’

‘Like an angel, Elizabeth, like an angel’. Red could feel tears forming in his eyes and turned away. ‘Why don’t you pop upstairs to my bedroom; there’s a full length mirror in there?’

‘Be right back’, Liz said as she headed for the stairs.

Red took the opportunity to get his breath back. Liz had looked so beautiful he didn’t quite know how to react. Okay, he thought, you can do this, Raymond. Just follow it through.

As Liz came back down the stairs, Red made a show of putting his phone back in his pocket and hurried towards her.

‘I know the timing’s not great, what with you wearing that dress and all but we need to go right now. My colleague just called. We haven’t a second to spare.’

‘Oh’, said Liz, suddenly looked a little worried. ‘Okay, well, I guess I’m going like this then’.

‘Don’t worry, Lizzy, the meeting shouldn’t take long. Quick, pick up your phone and let’s go’.

They both hurried to the car and Red jumped into the driving seat, swiftly starting the engine and pulling away. Within no time they were entering a small town nearby.

‘You’re meeting them here? This is a strange place’, Liz said as she peered out the window.

‘He was good enough to agree to meet me here. We’ve done a lot of business together over the years and I pay him handsomely’, Red said by way of explanation.

A few more minutes and they were pulling up in front of a restaurant. Red got out and came round to hold the door for Liz. He offered her his hand and helped her out.

‘Okay, Lizzy. Let’s go see what he has to offer us’.

They stepped towards the restaurant entrance and Red held the door open for Liz once more. She walked in and stopped dead.

Red stepped to her side and gently took her hand.

‘Raymond, what have you done?’, she said as she stared into the restaurant in near disbelief.


	6. Thank You

Liz stood in wonder as she tried to take in everything that was in front of her. The restaurant was completely empty of patrons, other than herself and Red. There were flowers everywhere; the tables, the sideboards, even around the edge of the small stage at the back of the room. It was like entering a florist’s. In the centre of the stage itself were five classical musicians, each of them having started to play as she and Red had entered. The lighting was low but tasteful and helped to set what was an instantly romantic atmosphere.

‘I hope you don’t mind my subterfuge, my dear. But I thought I’d take you up on your offer to allow me to take you to dinner? Somewhere the linen costs more than your dress, wasn’t it?’

Liz opened her mouth but as she turned to Red to say something, she instead felt tears pricking her eyes and just silently nodded instead, not wanting Red to hear her voice breaking.

‘Although’, Red said as he smoothed his fingers over her back, running them across the material of her dress, ‘I dare say this dress will run the linen close’. He smiled at her expectantly.

Eventually Liz felt she had to say something. She stepped into Red’s arms and pulled him into a tight embrace. ‘Thank you Raymond. This is just magical. And yes, you’re forgiven for your subterfuge’, Liz said as she managed to stop herself from crying.

‘You are more welcome than you can ever imagine, Elizabeth. This is the absolute least I can do after how you’ve looked after me the last few days. Now, come meet Alfredo’.

Red led Liz over to the establishment’s owner and introduced her to him. He then gave the man a huge bear hug and whispered something in his ear. Alfredo nodded, smiled warmly at Liz and said, ‘Miss Elizabeth, we hope you have a wonderful evening. We can prepare almost any dish you’d desire. With some limitations of course’, he concluded, his eyes twinkling.

‘Thank you, thank you so much’, Liz said, slowly starting to get used to the idea that Red had done all this for her. She turned to the quintet of musicians on the stage and watched as they continued playing a beautiful piece of Strauss.

‘Strauss was my idea, Lizzy. I was hoping maybe we could have a dance at some point this evening, if you’d like? If you play your cards right, I may even let you lead’, Red said as he took her arm and led her towards a table near the centre of the room. He pulled out her chair and she sat down. Once Red himself was seated he poured some water for Liz and the sommelier came over to show them the wine menu. Red quirked an eyebrow at Liz and she just laughed and said, ‘Go for it, Raymond, you’d only disapprove if I were to order chardonnay’. ‘As you wish, my dear’. Red swiftly made a choice and handed the menu back to the sommelier.

‘I thought maybe some champagne to get the evening going?’

‘Should you be drinking at all, Raymond? Are you sure it’s not too soon?’

‘Sweetheart, to be honest, I don’t know. But I’ve been absolutely fine all day. And I only really had one incident yesterday. I promise not to drink myself under the table but this is most definitely an occasion that calls for champagne’, he concluded, reaching over and squeezing her hand gently.

Liz narrowed her eyes at him and then reluctantly agreed. ‘Okay, but I’ll be watching you like a hawk, Mister. I don’t want to have to roll you back into the house and I certainly don’t want to face the wrath of Kate if you get worse again’.

‘Deal. Now, what would you like to eat? Alfredo wasn’t joking when he said he could prepare you almost anything you’d like. The man has a stockroom like Aladdin’s Cave!’

Liz giggled and pondered for a moment. ‘Hmm, maybe some kind of seafood to start? I love crab’.

‘Oh, good choice, Lizzy, excellent choice. And that’ll go just fine with our champagne’.

Red beckoned a waiter over and made their order and, just as he was leaving, the sommelier came back with their champagne.

‘Allow me’, Red said as the sommelier started to open the bottle. ‘I love making things go bang’, he said as he pulled a face at Liz, once more making her giggle.

Red opened the champagne in no time and handed the bottle back to the sommelier for him to pour their drinks.

‘To you, my beautiful Elizabeth. Thank you from the bottom of my heart’.

‘Thank you, Raymond’, Liz responded and her smile couldn’t have been any wider as she did so.

They sat there in companionable silence, just listening to the music for a while. Liz had calmed down and started to come to terms with what Red had done for her. She really did feel completely overcome by his thoughtfulness and yet again tears started to form in her eyes.

‘Raymond, thank you for this. But you know you don’t have to thank me for looking after you. You only needed looking after because you’d gotten yourself in danger luring those thugs away from me in the first place. I should be thanking you; you’re the one who went through hell’.

‘Oh, Lizzy, we saved each other. We always do, wouldn’t you agree? We are each other’s saviour’, Red said as he once more took her hand and slowly ran his fingers along her knuckles. ‘And I would go through it a thousand times over if it would keep you safe’.

‘Okay, Raymond, you’re gonna have to stop saying things like that or I’m going to be sobbing all evening’, Liz said as she dabbed at her eyes with her napkin. 

Red withdrew his hand and took another sip of champagne. ‘I’m sorry, Lizzy. I want you to have fun, not be crying all evening. Come, have some more champagne and try some of these olives. They are absolutely indescribable’.

Liz tried a couple and her eyes lit up. ‘Wow, I’ve never tasted olives like that before. They’re delicious’. She instantly reached for another two.

Just as she finished swallowing the olives, their crab starters arrived and they both tucked in eagerly, each making appreciative noises as they did so. Once they had finished their first course, the waiter reappeared and, having been persuaded to do so by Red, Liz again made the choice for their main course, fillet steak with new potatoes and haricots verts.

‘Right, sweetheart, how’s about a quick dance before our next course arrives?’ Red asked as he made to stand up.

‘That’d be wonderful’, Liz instantly agreed and allowed him to pull back her chair and donate his arm to helping her stand. He led her straight out onto the small dance floor in front of the stage and within seconds they were gliding around, perfectly in synch with each other. Red couldn’t help but grin at her like a besotted teenager the whole time they were dancing and Liz was finding it hard not just to grin right back. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been this relaxed and happy. And Red’s mood was just too infectious not to be swept up in it.

After twenty minutes or so, their main courses were delivered to their table and they made their way back. The food was delicious and they were once more kept from talking much by the sheer delight they were getting from eating it. Red had requested a bottle of Bordeaux from the food waiter when he’d ordered the steaks and it had been poured for them by the sommelier in order that they could enjoy it with their fillets.

Once they were done eating their main courses, the waiter swept up the plates and took their dessert order. Liz declared herself far too full for anything but Red insisted she have something and so she settled on some ice-cream, the flavours of his choosing. Red also ordered some coffee as he could begin to feel the effects of such a large meal beginning to take their toll on his energy levels and he wanted to dance with Lizzy one more time. After Red’s choice of cappuccino, pistachio and, to Liz’s surprise, vanilla ice-cream were brought to their table they slowly did their best to eat as much as they could but neither managed more than half. 

After sitting and drinking their coffee and talking to each other, with much laughter from them both, for another half an hour or so, Red requested that Liz join him for a dance. Despite how full she was feeling she was only too happy to do so. The wine had put her in a very good mood, along with all the other treats she’d been indulged with today. They walked together onto the dance floor and started to move together, with ease and confidence. Red had spoken to the quintet of musicians and they were no longer playing Strauss. The two of them now had the pleasure of a much slower, more relaxed piece of music to dance to. As Red held her close and allowed his hand to travel from her hip to the small of her back, Liz stepped even closer into him and rested her head on his shoulder. Rarely had she felt so at peace. She had certainly never felt so worshipped as she had this evening. Red’s surprises for her and his attention to her made her feel so grateful for him that she couldn’t help but pull her arms away from their traditional dancing positions and just wrap them around his waist, pulling him as close as she could to her.

‘Thank you again, Raymond. This has been one of the best nights of my whole life’, she said into his ear, her face resting on his shoulder.

‘I can say the same thing, my sweet. I wish we could stay here forever’, he said as he softly kissed her temple.

Liz leant back slightly and looked him in the eyes. They were positively glowing with love for her. The affection pouring off him overwhelmed her slightly and whether it was because of the alcohol or just the whole romantic nature of their evening, she slightly moved her head towards his and kissed him lightly on the lips.

‘Lizzy, please don’t feel you have to do anything you don’t want to, just to thank me for this’, Red said as he looked intently at her.

‘Why on earth would you think I don’t want to do this?’

‘Well, I just, I mean, you’ve not ever, that is….’. Red had no idea how to finish his sentence and so just allowed himself to be kissed a second time by Liz.

‘I’m pretty sure I want to do this’, Liz said as she smiled back at him. ‘Come on, let’s go back to the house’.

‘Of course, my dear’.

Red swiftly fetched their possessions from the table and said goodnight to Alfredo and all the staff and musicians. Liz saw him slip something into Alfredo’s pocket just as they left and smiled to herself. 

One of the waiters was going to drive them back to the house with another following in Alfredo’s car in order to drive them both back to the restaurant, after dropping Red and Liz off.

They both got in the back seat and Liz immediately slid over the centre and tucked herself into Red’s embrace. She wasn’t entirely sure what had gotten into her this evening. But she did know she didn’t want it to stop just yet. And she wasn’t going to let Red have the time and opportunity to overthink things before they got back to the house. She figured whispering sweet nothings into his ear and running her hands up and down his chest would be enough to keep his mind right where she wanted it.


	7. The Start of Something New

They arrived back at the house in no time and, having bade goodnight to the two waiters from the restaurant, made their way indoors. Red immediately headed for the front room, intent on locating his best scotch. Liz followed him, slightly nervous that he hadn’t said anything since they’d left the restaurant.

‘Are you okay, Raymond, you’ve been very quiet?’

‘Fine, fine, my dear. Would you like a nightcap?’, he asked as he held the bottle up for her attention.

‘Yes, why not?’

She sat on the couch and waited for him to pour them both a drink and come over to her.

He came back over and, to Liz’s relief, he chose to sit next to her on the couch rather than heading for one of the armchairs. He did, however, leave a gap between them as he sat down. Turning towards her, he raised his glass once more in a toast, ‘To you, Elizabeth’.

Liz raised her own glass and clinked it with his. She was suddenly filled with confusion and not a little embarrassment. Red was attempting to keep his distance with her and had even called her by her full name. What had she done by kissing him? He’d seemed okay with it at the restaurant, at least after she’d reassured him she wasn’t doing it on a whim. So what had changed now?

‘Raymond, please tell me you’re not angry I kissed you?’, she asked with such a worried look on her face that Red couldn’t help but reach out to hold her hand.

‘No, no, sweetheart. Not angry at all. I just…. I just can’t believe that I’m what you really want. Certainly not in the long-term. And being with you once is just not possible for me. You know how I feel about you. At least I hope you have some idea’, he said with a rueful smile before continuing, ‘It’s all or nothing for me, Lizzy. And I’d rather we never did any more that we’ve already done than I get to spend one night with you and then it’s back to our usual relationship’. He turned away and stared into his scotch glass as he finished, pulling his hand from her grasp as he did so.

Liz sat back and thought about what he’d said. She could completely understand why this wasn’t an easy thing for him. She knew something of the depths of his feelings for her and could see that one night of ‘fun’ would be anything but for him. However, over the last few days she’d realised her feelings for him were far greater than she’d realised. Or, at least, that she’d admitted to herself before now. She threw back her scotch in one gulp then reached forward to set the glass on the table.

‘Okay, I see what you’re saying. And I do understand. But here’s what I think. I think you love me, are in love with me’.

Red’s cheek twitched as she said this and he gripped his glass even tighter in his hand, bracing himself for what was inevitably coming.

‘But do you know what? I love you, too.’ Whether it was the alcohol or not, Liz didn’t know. But she found herself saying this with absolutely no fear or worry that she might be going too fast. She did love him and she was determined to make him see that. ‘I love you very much. These last few days, seeing what you went through, it hurt me so deeply. I would’ve done anything to be able to take that pain from you. Anything. Especially as you got yourself hurt because you had thrown yourself in harm’s way for me. Again. And then, as you got better and back to yourself, I saw the wonderful man I love start to reappear. And I was so relieved. So happy. And today? My god, Raymond, what you did today was just beautiful. The dresses, the planning, the joy on your face when you saw how happy you’d made me. It was probably the best day of my life. And I love you for that. So, please don’t think for an instant that I want any kind of relationship between us to be a one-night stand. Or even just something we indulge in when I’m on the run and then when we clear my name, I’ll turn around and leave you. I love you Raymond and I want you so much. I want to make you happy. And I need you with me for me to be happy’.

As she finished speaking, Red turned his head and looked at her. She had tears in her eyes and looked so worried that he might still reject her. He swiftly reached forward and placed his glass on the table, instantly turning back to her and pulling her towards him. Their lips met for a third time and this time there was no mistaking it was a two-way exchange. Both of them groaned as their tongues started to probe and explore each other’s mouths. Red’s hands split between wrapping around her waist and tugging on the back of her neck to bring her closer to his eager mouth. Liz, in turn, reached around his waist and held him as close as she could with the slightly awkward way they were sitting on the couch.

Eventually they pulled apart slightly and Red rested his forehead against hers. ‘Oh, Lizzy. I believe you. I may be a fool for believing that this will last forever but, my god, I can’t resist you. I’ve never wanted anyone so badly in my life. I’m going to trust that you do really love me. I know you think you do but…..’

His words faded away and Liz reached up and stroked his cheek gently. ‘All I can tell you, Raymond, is that I love you right now. I have done for some time. And I honestly don't see my feelings changing anytime soon. All they’ve ever done is get stronger. Please have some faith in me?’

He looked up and met her eyes and smiled hopefully at her. She leant in once more and pecked him quickly on the lips and then stood up. His eyes opened wider as she did so, worried that she might be going to bed. However, he soon realised that was the last thing on her mind.

Liz reached behind her and just about managed to grab the top of her zipper, quickly tugging it down her back. She then shrugged herself out of the exquisite red dress so carefully chosen for her by Red and let it drop around her ankles. She was left standing there in just her jewellery, bra, panties and heels. As Red looked her up and down, his mouth fell open slightly and he felt arousal starting to stir in his pants.

‘Raymond, if you’re planning on seducing me tonight, you’re gonna have to stop doing that goldfish impression, it’s not very becoming’, Liz said as she laughed at his expression.

Red immediately snapped his mouth shut and looked up to her eyes, ‘Sweetheart, I'm pretty sure you’re the one who’s seducing me. Not that I mind one tiny bit. Dammit, you are divine. Heavenly. Absolute perfection’.

Liz smiled at him and the openly wondrous look on his face. She then reached behind herself once again and in seconds her bra joined her dress on the floor. Red couldn’t help but moan as her perfectly sized, pert breasts appeared to him for the first time. He reached towards her and she grabbed both his hands at once. She then took a step between his legs, nudging them slightly further apart, and knelt down. 

Red gazed down at her in wonder. What on earth had he done to deserve this magical creature kneeling at his feet, gazing up at him as if he were the only man on earth? Liz reached out and started tugging at his tie, loosening it. Red’s hands moved to help her but she slapped them away. ‘Please, Raymond, let me do this?’ He nodded silently and let his hands drop to his sides. Who was he to deny her anything?

She finished with his tie and then motioned for him to lean forward so she could rid him of his jacket. His vest and shirt followed too. Now he was sitting there topless and Liz couldn’t resist leaning forward and running her tongue up from his navel to the tip of his chin. She then pulled back slightly, smiled at him and kissed him as lovingly and softly as she could. Red’s hands came up again to hold her arms but once more Liz slapped them away. 

‘Just a little longer, Raymond. I want this to be just about you for a little while, okay?’ 

Red was incapable of speech at this point and merely nodded at her. She then reached down and started on his belt buckle. That and his pants were undone in no time and she looked at him questioningly as she made a tugging motion. He raised his hips and Liz pulled his pants down to his ankles. His shoes and socks she made quick work of and then he was sitting there clad only in his boxers.

Red’s breathing had become short and rapid, he could feel his heart hammering away nineteen to the dozen in his chest. Dear god, was he even going to survive much longer? He needed to touch her so badly it was all he could think about.

Liz stood up again and motioned for him to do the same. She removed her panties and stepped out of them. She then, with no preamble at all, yanked his boxers down his legs, careful to pull his erection free as she did so. Her hand on his member made Red buck slightly but he bit on his lip to control himself. The next thing he knew he had been pushed back onto the couch and Liz was back on her knees between his legs, wearing only her heels and the earrings he had bought her. She had a very dirty look on her face and he honestly felt his heart was going to stop with the anticipation of what was coming next.

She didn’t make him wait long as she slowly lowered her mouth to the tip of his engorged manhood. Locking her eyes with his, she parted her lips and took him into her mouth. One of her hands gripped the base of his shaft and the other reached out for his hand, their fingers instinctively intertwining and gripping tightly. Red’s other hand found its way into her hair and he gently took a hold of it, needing as much contact with her as he could get.

Liz started swirling her tongue around him and running it across the top of the head before then ducking down and sucking him in as far as she could. Meanwhile her hand on the base held him tightly and squeezed in time with her mouth’s motions. Red groaned deeply and loudly, doing everything he could not to move his hips. He wanted so much to force more of himself into her mouth but he would never do that, would never give more than she wanted to take. 

After a few more seconds of sucking from Liz, Red knew he had to stop her. He tugged gently on her hair and made her look up at him. She knew why he had stopped her and smiled up at him as she released him slowly, running her tongue from base to tip as she did so. She then reached up and took the hand he had in her hair into her own hand and using his strength, she straddled him on the couch and sat in his lap.

Red now knew he’d be allowed to touch her, at least he hoped he could. He leant forward the second she sat down and covered one of her breasts with his mouth, sucking on her nipple and biting gently. Now it was Liz’s turn to moan and she arched her back into him, needing as much contact as he could give. Red was only too happy to oblige and moved his mouth to her other breast, ensuring he gave it as much attention as the first.

Liz enjoyed the sensation of his mouth on her for a a bit longer and then pulled one of his hands down towards her core. She took his fingers and ran them through her folds. ‘Feel what you’ve done to me, Raymond. Feel how wet I am’. Red groaned and pulled his mouth away from her breasts, briefly screwing his eyes shut in order to keep his composure. He then looked up at her and took in her appearance. Her hair was wild, her cheeks flushed, her eyes barely even blue anymore, such was the level of her arousal. She looked back at him and started to raise her hips. She found the tip of his member instinctually and hovered above him just for a second. Then she slowly lowered herself onto him, impaling herself fully in one fluid motion.

The noises the two of them made were perfectly in unison and both equally hungry with primal need. Red’s hands came to her hips to support her and she leant forward and joined her hands behind his head, kissing him deeply as she did so. He had filled her completely and she couldn’t wait to get moving but she just had to show him how tender her love was for him one more time before she showed him how much she physically needed his body. As she pulled away from the kiss, she rose up slightly and started to ride him. Red’s hips immediately went into motion too and the two of them quickly found a rhythm.

Despite both of them wanting this first time to last as long as possible, they were both nearing their climax in just a few short minutes. Liz came first and cried out as she did so, dropping her head down onto Red’s shoulder and shuddering around him. Red slowed his movements and allowed her to recover, peppering her cheek and temple with kisses and whispering into her ear how much he loved her, how beautiful she was when she orgasmed. Liz came back to herself and looked at Red, his eyes so filled with love. She then fastened her mouth to his and started to move her hips up and down again, eager to give him as much pleasure as he’d just given her. She moved swiftly up and down his shaft, using her inner muscles as much as she could and Red found himself climaxing very quickly, such was the ferocity with which she squeezed herself around him and the speed at which she was moving. He growled out her name as he came and grabbed her tightly, burying his face between her breasts. 

They sat there like that for a while, each kissing and stroking the other, both perfectly happy and glowing with love for each other. Eventually Liz started to feel a little cold as the sweat cooled on her body and she made to stand up. As she stood, Red pulled out of her and they both groaned one last time, a loss they each keenly felt. She then tugged on his hands and made him stand with her. 

‘That was the perfect ending to the perfect day, Raymond. Thank you’.

Red laughed as he wrapped his arms around her. ‘Thank me? Good lord, Lizzy. Thank you. I don’t deserve you and I didn’t deserve that’.

Liz scowled at him, ‘Raymond, I know you love to hate yourself. But I don’t, okay? I don’t like it when you’re so hard on yourself. Please just allow me to love you and trust that I might be right to do so’.

Red smiled down at her and kissed her on her nose. ‘Okay, my beautiful girl. I will trust you. Now, what’s say we take this upstairs?’

‘Seriously, round two already?’

‘Sweetheart, I had a very large dinner. I have a lot of energy right now’, Red said as he winked and smiled at her.

‘Okay, stud. Let’s go to bed. I might just pick up all our clothes first though. Don’t want Kate or Dembe coming in first thing in the morning to this debauched sight’.

Red laughed and helped her to pick up their assorted garments. They then both headed up the stairs to his bedroom and, having both visited the bathroom to freshen up, they met again at the foot of the bed, both with huge grins on their faces. They stood facing each other and joined hands.

‘So, Mr. Reddington, what was it you were saying about round two?’

Red quirked an eyebrow at Liz and smiled his most devilish smile.

‘Allow me to demonstrate’

Liz yelped loudly as she was thrown on the bed and Red kneeled on it and then started crawling up towards her.

‘I do hope you slept well last night, Lizzy. I fear you may not sleep at all tonight’.

‘Sleep’s overrated anyway’

‘My dear, I absolutely agree’, Red said as he lowered himself onto her and they kissed each other lovingly.

Red pulled his head up away from Liz and looked her in the eyes. ‘I love you Elizabeth Keen. I always will’.

Liz stroked her fingers down each of his sideburns and cupped his cheeks, ‘Raymond Reddington, I love you too. I can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings. You’ve given me hope for a happy future’.

Red beamed at her, ‘That fills my heart more than you can ever imagine, my sweet. But let’s not think about tomorrow just yet’.

As Red said this, he waggled his eyebrows and started moving down her body.

‘After all, the night is but young’.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The End

**Author's Note:**

> I own nothing of The Blacklist


End file.
